Atmospheric Aerosol Distribution in 2016–2017 over the Eastern European Region Based on the GEOS-Chem Model

Gennadi Milinevsky,Anatoliy Liptuga,Olena Turos,Yuriy Serozhkin,Volodymyr Kyslyi,Anatoli Chaikovsky,Asen Grytsai,Andrey Bril,Yulia Yukhymchuk,Vassyl Danylevsky,Yuke Wang,Natallia Miatselskaya

doi:10.3390/atmos11070722

Abstract

The spatial and temporal distributions of atmospheric aerosols have been simulated using the GEOS-Chem model over the sparsely investigated Eastern European region. The spatial distribution of the particulate matter (PM2.5) concentration, mineral dust, black carbon, organic aerosols, sea salt, as well as nitrate, sulfate, and ammonium aerosols during 2016–2017 were considered. The aerosols’ concentration, seasonality and spatial features were determined for the region. Particulate matter (PM2.5) contamination prevails in Poland in late autumn and winter. The monthly mean PM2.5 concentration reached 55 µg m−3 over the Moscow region in the early spring of both years. The mineral dust concentration varied significantly, reaching 40 µg m−3 over the southwestern part of Eastern Europe in March 2016. The areas most polluted by black carbon aerosols were the central and southern parts of Poland in the winter. The organic aerosols’ concentration was the largest in March and April, reaching 10 µg m−3 over East Belarus. The sea salt aerosol concentration increased in the coastal regions in winter due to the wind strength. Mineral dust aerosols in Eastern Europe are mainly composed of dust, partially transported from the Ukrainian steppe and partially from the Saharan Desert.

Highlights

Studies of aerosols’ spatiotemporal distribution on global and regional scales are critical for climate research and air quality monitoring
In Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS)-Chem, the PM2.5 is considered as the sum of the nitrate, sulfate, less than 2.5 μm
In GEOS-Chem, the PM2.5 is considered as the sum of the nitrate, sulfate, ammonium, organic aerosol, black carbon, and sea salt in accumulation mode with an effective radius ammonium, organic aerosol, black carbon, and sea salt in accumulation mode with an effective of 0.01–0.50 μm, mineral dust with an effective radius centered at 0.7 μm, and 38% of the mineral radius of 0.01–0.50 μm, mineral dust with an effective radius centered at 0.7 μm, and 38% of the dust with an effective radius centered at 1.4 μm

Summary

Introduction

Studies of aerosols’ spatiotemporal distribution on global and regional scales are critical for climate research and air quality monitoring. The aerosol distribution and properties are determined from observational data obtained by various techniques, such as in situ measurements and ground-based and satellite remote sensing, for the purposes of determining the aerosol load and for radiative transfer. The ground-based sun-photometer measurements of the aerosol optical depth (AOD) are very accurate but limited in time and space [4,5]. The spatiotemporal variability of the aerosols’ concentration in the atmosphere varies with altitude because of the short lifetime of the aerosol particles in the troposphere: from hours to weeks. The content and spatiotemporal distribution of the aerosol particles, their chemical composition and microphysical structure, are defined by the physical conditions in the atmosphere and their seasonal variations [6]. The seasonal variations in the aerosol concentration and properties were detected by many observations over the globe in different conditions (e.g., [7,8,9])

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